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Grouse, Pheasants and Old Glassby R. Michael DiLullo"The variety and density of life is often the greatest along edges." -Aldo Leopold  R. Michael DiLullo Although the morning temperature was in the low forties, a freeze the night before had caused skim-ice to form on the puddles. I had worked-up a sweat bustin’ brush in the dark jungle of tangled brambles and briars below the orchard. As we crested a hill, I stopped to catch my breath and take in the view before me. A frost \overed the landscape, turning the ground foliage into a glaze of ice crystals. The shroud of white and the vibrant autumn colors lay juxtaposed against an azure sky. A light breeze was blowing through the trees and the bright hues of red, orange and gold danced to the wind’s rhythm. A perfect October morning to be afield, I thought. My breath was rising like the mist off the farm pond to my left, and "Bess’" panting resembled that of a lumbering locomotive. The air was cold and damp, and I could feel my wet shirt against my back, as an uncontrollable shiver overtook my body.  Treasures of an October morning; hunting old homesteads has always been productive for upland birds because they offer large areas of edge cover. They can also yield treasures from era’s long since past. Photo by: Author Ahead of me, almost completely camouflaged against the background of saplings, overgrown vines and bushes, was an abandoned farm. Thorn and briar bushes along an old fence line led to the battered farmhouse and dilapidated barn. The house was still intact. Most of the windows were broken, however, and there was a good size hole in the roof where the limb of a large oak had come to rest during some storm years before. Part of the porch roof had fallen in, and the overgrown hedges and ivy had taken over. A net of ivy vines covered the front of the house and several cedar trees had taken root helping to conceal the old home-site even more. As I moved closer, I noticed it had that distinct smell of rotting wood and earth, of mildew and sun baked pine tar, the same smells that seem to always inhabit these lost places. The barn’s roof had collapsed bringing with it part of the sides of the building. As I came around the side of the house to get a better look at the barn, I noticed something move from the corner of my eye. There in the tangles of an overgrown grapevine were two grouse. The birds were busy feeding and preening themselves and hadn’t noticed me yet. Almost before I had stepped from the cedars that were concealing me from their sight, they flushed in an explosion of feathers. I swung and leveled the Charles Daly on the bird to my right. As the old twenty spoke, I saw the bird veer sharply and disappear in the brush near the barn.  Hunting old fence lines and hedgerows can be very productive for upland birds. The Author’s English springer spaniel "Bess" with a trio of pheasants, all shot along an old fence-line on an abandoned farm. Photo by: Author As we made our way around the barn, I realized something an old-timer told me when I first started hunting, that old home-sites are magnets for wildlife. Much of my knowledge, both of hunting, fishing and life, has come from experience. The rest has come from research and the advice of older, more experienced, and usually wiser individuals. Although, at times I was too stubborn to accept it, in hindsight I later realized their advice was usually worthy of much consideration. As I reflected back over my time spent afield, I began to realize how much game I have observed, hunted and harvested in just this type of environment. For they are usually very productive havens for upland bird hunting. These areas provide adequate cover and food sources for a large variety of small game animals. Many of my days hunting for pheasants and quail are spent concentrated around abandoned farms and old home-sites. The mixture of overgrown and broken cover, of fields and patches of saplings, thickets and secondary growth that typifies abandoned homesteads are natural attractors for game. This mixing of various covers and food sources lend itself to the fringe element in which game animals thrive. | ||
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